Where in Ukraine is the greatest workforce shortage? Insights from the State Employment Service reveal the current situation.

The most significant labor shortage in Ukraine is among skilled workers. This includes professions such as seamstresses, electricians for electrical equipment repair, plumbers, electricians, track assemblers, emergency recovery workers, welders, gas-electric welders, auto mechanics, and others.

Julia Zhovtyak, the director of the State Employment Service, discussed this in an interview with RBK-Ukraine.

"Today, the labor market situation remains challenging. Before the full-scale invasion, there was a shortage of vacancies; now, the problem is a lack of personnel. In other words, it is now the time of the worker," she stated.

According to her, there is a shortage of staff in almost all sectors of economic activity. "We expect further growth in competition for workers: retaining staff and searching for new ones," the official added.

As assessed by the State Employment Service, the greatest difficulties in filling vacancies arise in the transport sector, construction, and manufacturing industries.

"It is evident that during the post-war recovery, the situation will worsen. Already, the Ministry of Economy estimates the labor force shortage over the next ten years at around 4.5 million people," Zhovtyak reported.

Not Just the War

The director of the State Employment Service noted that a similar trend existed even before the full-scale invasion.

"This is referred to as structural unemployment. However, it has intensified with the onset of the war. After the temporary occupation of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions by Russia, a significant portion of the local population, including many mine workers, relocated to other regions of the country, where there is simply no demand for such specialists.

In her view, the cause of structural unemployment is that Ukraine has not promoted these skilled professions for many years. They have been considered unprestigious and low-paying for years.

"Recently, I spoke with a community of designers. They mentioned that Ukrainians are reluctant to work as seamstresses, for instance. This is due to the perception that this field offers very low wages. In reality, the actual salaries of seamstresses are much higher. For example, welders are offered salaries of up to 100,000 hryvnias, while CNC machine operators can earn up to 120,000 hryvnias per month," Zhovtyak explained.

She stated that after the war, there will be economic recovery and restoration of territories, particularly after de-occupation.

"Thus, we will need people primarily in the construction and housing restoration sectors, as well as in the recovery of energy infrastructure, water supply, and gas supply. The healthcare sector will also require development. There will be an increasing demand for junior medical personnel and workers in the social sphere," she said.

It is worth noting that Deputy Minister of Economy Tatyana Berezhnaya stated that due to the war, the emigration of Ukrainians abroad, and internal migration, there is a labor shortage and structural unemployment in the country. While in 2021, the official labor market accounted for 11.5 million workers, this figure dropped to 9 million officially employed in 2023.

According to preliminary estimates, to ensure an annual GDP growth of 7% until 2030, Ukraine needs an additional 4.5 million workers, Berezhnaya reported.